


Of Finches & Firsts

by Doexeyedxgirl



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Draco Malfoy In Love, Draco Malfoy/Original character - Freeform, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:28:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26707513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doexeyedxgirl/pseuds/Doexeyedxgirl
Summary: "A Hufflepuff? Crushing on a Slytherin? Sounds like the start of a terrible joke to me, but ok."Eleanora Finch has harbored feelings for Draco Malfoy since their first year at Hogwarts. Secretly, of course, and very much from afar. But when she's finally taken out of her role of being a background character in his life, will it be what she always wanted, or what she wish she never knew?
Comments: 11
Kudos: 13





	1. The Firsts of Many

**Author's Note:**

> Before we begin, I would like to say thank you so much for taking the time to check out this story, it means a lot <3 I'd also like to add a disclaimer that this is my first HP story and it's intimidating to write for a fandom that already has so much amazing work dedicated to it. With that being said, I apologize if anything I write isn't 100% accurate. I haven't fully read the books & am in the process of rewatching the movies. Also, if you're wondering what inspired me to write this story & what reignited my love for HP, it was definitely being stuck on Draco tiktok.
> 
> Anyways, off we go !

The first time Eleanora Finch (or Ellie, as she preferred to be called), ever saw Draco Malfoy was at the sorting hat ceremony their first year at Hogwarts. She thought he was striking upon first sight, with his silver grey eyes contrasting with his nearly white hair. She knew he would leave a lasting impression upon whoever looked at him, and she very much envied him for it. She was as plain a Jane as they came, with her average brown locks and average brown eyes. She couldn't keep her eyes off of him for the rest of the night, drawn to, not just his features, but the mysterious aura that surrounded him.

When her name had gotten called for the sorting, she was incredibly nervous for many reasons:

1\. For the house she was going to be sorted into that would shape her life for the next 7 years.

2\. For the several hundreds of eyes watching her as she went up the steps. 

3\. For the white haired boy who she seemed to have developed the tiniest little crush on.

Thankfully, she made it without tripping and making a complete fool of herself, and she was pleasantly surprised to find out that the house she'd be sorted into was:

"Hufflepuff," the storing hat declared, and a thunderous applause followed suit.

She smiled, looking towards the table with the yellow cladded students as they cheered and waved her over. She couldn't wait to tell her father, who was a proud Hufflepuff himself, that she was now one, too.

When it's Draco's turn to be sorted, she made sure to pay very close attention. A small silly part of her wanted to cross her fingers and hope that he'd somehow be sorted into Hufflepuff, just like her. That way she could get to know him better and become his friend. Maybe they could even be study buddies.

Of course, that was a very optimistic wish.

"Slytherin," the hat announced, and all those hopes quickly came tumbling down because if there was one house Ellie knew she wasn't going to be able to fit in with, it was Slytherin.

There went her chances of being potentially noticed by Draco Malfoy.

Letting out a sigh, she was able to manage a small smile as she clapped for the boy along with the rest of her fellow schoolmates.

She spent the entire year making new friends, learning spells, studying up for her exams, and never having the opportunity to talk to Draco, her only regret of the year.

For Draco, his first year at Hogwarts consisted of him developing the reputation of being the school's bully. Most of his antics we concentrated heavily on Harry Potter and his friends, but he truly didn't spare anyone that wasn't a part of his Slytherin crew.

Still, this didn't lessen the small crush Ellie had on him since the day of the sorting. Despite his actions, she really felt that the boy was much more than what he projected to the world.

The first time Eleanora Finch ever got to talk to Draco Malfoy was during her second year, when she had accidentally ran into him as she rushed to her potions class.

She was too busy worrying about making it in time to class, really not wanting a reason to make Snape chastise her, that she had forgotten to pay attention to her surroundings. A disastrous recipe for running into someone, which was exactly what ended up happening.

"Hey!" he said with a grunt as his books fell from his hands.

Ellie, mortified, hardly even noticed it was Draco at first, as she immediately leaned down to pick up his books.

"Oh I'm so sorry! I'm a complete klutz. I should've been paying more attention, I just-" as she got back up from the floor, books recovered & in her arms, she froze as her eyes made contact with his striking silver ones.

"Yeah, you definitely should have! What are you, moronic? Next time, try not to run into your superiors, first year," he said in distaste, brushing off the sleeves of his robe.

Ellie stood there, shocked into silence. She felt her cheeks warm and mentally tried to coach herself through the moment.

Take a breath, don't sound so nervous.

"A-actually, we're in the same year. I...umm...I first saw you at the sorting, but we had History of Magic together. I sat a row ahead of you," she corrected, biting her lip as she began to over analyze the tone she used, really hoping she sounded as polite as possible.

He tore his gaze away from his sleeves and locked eyes with her again, a chill going down her spine.

"Really? Strange. I don't remember you. Then again, you Hufflepuffs are so forgettable," he stated with a roll of his eyes.

"I'll take those," he said as he grabbed the books from her hands and walked off.

Just like that. No 'thank you', no apology. Not even an offer to walk her to class which they actually happened to share this year as well.

Ellie watched him walk away, her checks definitely as red as Gryffindor's robes at this point, feeling dejected and absolutely embarrassed. She always imagined what her first conversation with Draco would be, as pitiful as that sounded, but in her head it definitely never went like this.

She ended up late to potions class and got lectured by Snape in front of the whole class, including Draco himself.

She wondered if he remembered who she was, or if he once again erased her from his head and permanently labeled her as a 'forgettable Hufflepuff'.

The rest of the year went on as normal after that, nothing too special.

The first time Eleanora Finch really understood what her feelings for Draco Malfoy were was in her third year, on the train ride to Hogwarts.

Ellie watched from the window as the train passed through the lush scenery of grand trees & clear blue skies, hands fiddling with the sleeves of her sweater. Her best friend, Mauve Ambrose, was seated beside her, gossiping about potential romances ("I think Ginny is head over heels for that Harry Potter kid and everyone knows it. Except, you know,  
that Harry Potter kid.") and who was to have the 'biggest glow up' of their entire year group ("My money is on Longbottom. Remember that I called it, ok. I want a witness to prove that I said it first.").

Hearing the candy trolley pass by, Ellie perked up and politely excused herself from her friend, walking out of their compartment. Her eyes searched for the trolley and she caught it making its way towards the back of the train, determined to make it to it before the last of the chocolate frogs were taken.

When she approached the trolley, she waited for the attendant to continue on along with one of the students as they picked out a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. Once the attendant turned towards her, Ellie smiled wide, ready to request a chocolate frog, when she felt someone approach from behind her.

"A chocolate frog for me, yeah? And make sure it doesn't have Dumbledore's card. I have like 10 of that old bat," said a familiar, snarky voice.

Ellie turned and her breath immediately caught in her throat; it was Draco Malfoy.

"You're in luck, there was only one left. Although, I can't really confirm if this one has a Dumbledore or not..." the attendant said, handing him the box.

Ellie frowned a rather sad frown, disappointed. Perhaps one would blame the Malfoy boy for taking her turn (she did get there first after all) but in truth, he wanted what he wanted and he wasn't afraid to get it.

In Ellie's mind, all was fair in candy and war.

"Hey, aren't you the girl who ran into me last year? The Hufflepuff?" he asked her, eyes looking her up and down.

She felt so small in his presence. Although they were about the same height their first year together, he towered over her at this point in time.

"I...y-yeah. That's me. Umm...my name's Ellie, actually. And congrats on the frog. I came to get one but you managed to get the last one," she said, trying to keep it cool on the outside when on the inside she was a mess of nerves.

She really wanted Draco to like her. Not in a big, important way. No. Just enough to remember her name, at least.

He continued on staring at her silently, even when she finished talking. His gaze felt like a microscope on her and she could feel her cheeks heat up.

"You know, you have big eyes. Like a bug," he says bluntly after a moment and Ellie really wished she knew a spell that would have the floor swallow her whole.

"Umm...." she was unable to come up with a response.

She wish she were witty or funny or charismatic, but socializing did at times become quite difficult for her, and she wasn't gifted with a quick mind or a sharp tongue.

"Anyways, I'm gonna go enjoy my frog now," he said as he walked away.

She was not surprised to feel the slight sting of tears forming in her eyes. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down. She hated the fact that she was actually so sensitive. Her parents tried to make her feel better about it, stating that it just meant that she had a big heart.

Well, she thought, if having a big heart meant it was easy for her to cry, then it didn't seem like a very good thing to have.

Keeping her tears at bay (at least until she could sit down and put her sweater over her head so no one could see), Ellie walked over to her compartment.

It was when she was nearly there that Draco's head popped out from his compartment's sliding door, startling her. She let out a small yelp, putting her hand over her mouth almost immediately after.

"Here, have this," he stated simply, as he reached his hand out towards her.

To Ellie's surprise, it was the chocolate frog box. Her eyes widened, staring at it before cautiously retrieving it from his hand, switching her gaze back to him.

"I only wanted it for the card, and it's another stupid Dumbledore one" he claims, and before Ellie could say anything, he slides the door shut, leaving her standing alone in the middle of the walkway, chocolate frog in hand.

It was then that she realized that the box had its wrapping still in tact, meaning it was never opened in the first place.

Once she made it to her compartment and sat back down in her seat ("Nice! You got Celestina Warbeck," Mauve stated excitedly as she opened the box for her), Ellie realized that her little crush on Draco Malfoy had turned into an actual one.

The first time Eleanora Finch ever got to experience what it was like to fall in love with Draco Malfoy was in her fourth year at Hogwarts, a few weeks before the Yule Ball.


	2. The Trouble with Tournaments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From her spot in the table she was able to look across the room and spot Draco, who was seated with his Slytherin housemates. He rolled his eyes and looked very displeased so she could only assume that he was interested in putting his name in the goblet. She felt a surge of gratitude for Dumbledore and his new rule then. If his words were anything to heed, the challenges the tournament consisted of was nothing to laugh at.

Ellie’s fourth year brought on the news of The Triwizard Tournament, which was to be held at Hogwarts that very year. This induced a frenzy of excitement from everyone, especially those who were interested in participating themselves, along with the announcement that two other schools were to be competing with them as well. 

The excitement died down for many, however, when Dumbledore had announced that no student under the age of 17 could volunteer to participate, which was more than half of those attending, her included. She didn’t mind it really, seeing as she had no interest in competing for the Triwzard cup (she wasn’t very athletic or even brave enough for that matter), but many of her Hufflepuff housemates were upset about the newly implemented rule. 

From her spot in the table she was able to look across the room and spot Draco, who was seated with his Slytherin housemates. He rolled his eyes and looked very displeased so she could only assume that he was interested in putting his name in the goblet. She felt a surge of gratitude for Dumbledore and his new rule then. If his words were anything to heed, the challenges the tournament consisted of was nothing to laugh at. 

The schools they would be competing with was Beaxbatons Academy of Magic and Drumstrang Institute and all the students were very enthused with the new arrivals, Mauve included. 

“Viktor Krum? More like Viktor Yum,” she teased with a mischievous wink towards said boy’s direction, sending him a little wave. 

Ellie lightly elbowed her shoulder, embarrassed at her daring friend’s antics, yet was unable to stifle back a laugh. Despite being a Hufflepuff, Mauve could very much rival any Gryfiindor’s bravery. Especially when it came to boys. 

“He just got here and you’re already making googly eyes at him? Geez Mauve, give him a second to stretch his legs at least,” Ellie teased as Mauve tossed a pea at her, causing her to snicker. 

“Oh ha-ha. Keep in mind that with the Triwizard Tournament there’s the Yule Ball and there’s no way I’m letting you attend without a date, so you better have some boys in mind ‘cause Merlin knows I’m not gonna be the one scrambling to find you one last minute,” she said as she began to dig into the feast.

Ellie’s cheeks reddened as she found her eyes wondering back to Draco, who at the moment seemed to be laughing at something Blaise Zabini had said. 

Despite them being best friends, Ellie never told Mauve about her crush on Draco, for several reasons:

1\. It was Draco Malfoy, the ‘Slytherin prince’.

2\. Mauve absolutely despised Draco Malfoy, the ‘Slytherin prince’.

3\. She would probably pressure Ellie to say more than two words to Draco Malfoy, the ‘Slytherin prince’, because despite her personal feelings for him, she was as supportive a friend as possible and as pushy as one could be. 

Besides, she thought, it’s not like anything was ever going to happen with him. And as for the Yule Ball, Draco would never be interested in being her date. She made a mental note to think of someone before the time came just so Mauve could be pleased.

Talk of the tournament had shifted one day, however, when they announced the participants and Harry Potter, a fourth year, was picked by the Goblet of Fire. 

Not only was Harry not 17, but the champion for Hogwarts was already picked: fellow Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory. Many blamed Harry, believing he had done some spell to outdo the enchantment Dumbledore had casted around the Goblet. Ellie herself didn’t know what to think. From what she knew and experienced about Harry, it didn’t seem like something he’d do. Still, someone threw his name in and now Hogwarts had two champions.

“Us Hufflepuffs can never catch a break, can we?” Augustus Boggs, a fellow fourth year, said with a sigh.

Ellie was presently in the Hufflepuff common room, where her and Mauve immediately headed to right after the champions were named. 

“Right? We get one chance to be known and celebrated in the school and now we have to share it with Gryffindor. As if they don’t get enough praise and attention,” another boy, Milton Morris chided in, looking just as annoyed.

Mauve shook her head at them from her spot on the couch.

“Come on boys, do relax will you? Even with his name being called, do you really think Harry Potter has a chance of winning the tournament, especially with Cedric as our champion? Harry’s cool and all but come on, he’s just a fourth year. He’s way in over his head. Bet he’s regretting putting his name in. Kinda feel for him, if I’m honest,” she admitted, looking towards Ellie who was seated beside her.

Ellie had been listening to all the conversations being had in the room, and despite being a bit upset about what transpired, she couldn’t seem to agree with what most were saying.

“I don’t know guys...Harry looked shocked, even terrified when Dumbledore announced his name. Now, I can’t say he didn’t manage a way to throw his name in the Goblet because I wasn’t there, but his reaction seemed incredibly genuine and I never thought of Harry as a convincing liar,” she stated, fiddling with the ends of her bright yellow scarf.

Augustus, Mauve, and Milton seemed to think what she said over before finally shrugging their shoulders and shifting the subject to discussing ways to get back at Harry.

Ellie rolled her eyes, leaving the conversation mentally before deciding to leave it physically as well. No one cared to listen to her anyways. 

Mauve flashed her a look of concern when she got up from the couch but Ellie quickly informed her of her plan to head to the astronomy tower to get some air and maybe start on a sketch or two. 

The conversations being had in the room were making her feel anxious and sick, especially when most of them consisted of bashing on the poor boy who she thoroughly believed was innocent. It was unlike her house to act this way, but given the circumstances, she sadly understood why they were so fired up. A part of her thought back to Cedric and wondered what was going on in his head. The pressure to win was now doubled and she couldn’t imagine what he was going through.

Sketch book and pencil pouch now in hand, Ellie made her way up the top of the tower and settled down in her spot on the floor near one of the railings. She hummed as she opened up the pouch and took out a black pencil, flipping to an empty page on her nearly filled book. 

Sketching was an escape for Ellie and she was very much in need of one at the moment. Lost in the way her pencil slid across the page, she didn’t hear the footsteps on the stairs or even noticed the person when they made it up.

“Do you mind?” said the person, and Ellie jumped at the sudden break of silence.

“Oh!” she yelped, her foot accidentally kicking her open pouch, causing the pencils inside to roll over as it fell on its side.

She stayed there, frozen for a moment as she stared at none other than Draco Malfoy. He remained still by the stairs, brows furrowed at her and she cursed under her breath as she got on her knees and scrambled to pick up her scattered pencils off the floor. 

“Sorry, sorry. I...I was so concentrated, you just spooked me,” she said sheepishly, a blush threatening to spread across her cheeks, a common occurrence whenever Draco was in the room.

He watched her pick her things up, not bothering to respond to her admission. Instead, he analyzed her silently, and Ellie could feel his gaze as if it were burning through her. It was then that he began to walk towards her and she froze when his perfectly shiny black shoe made contact with a pencil she was about to reach over for.

“Hufflepuff, is that you?” he asked simply and Ellie lifted her head up immediately.

“Umm...yes. It’s me,” she said and her cheeks betrayed her as she could feel the warmth radiating off them.

“Of course it’d be you up here. We keep running into each other. I’m starting to think you’re stalking me,” he said in a cocky manner and it took everything in Ellie’s power not to scream in complete frustration and embarrassment because of course this looked bad and of course she’d look like some freaky stalker. 

Instead, she babbled on like an idiot. 

“I-I..ummm...I...n-no I...never...umm...”

Draco frowned. 

“Relax, will you? I wasn’t serious. Unless you really are stalking me and then I’d say you’re doing a rather shit job at it as the whole point is to not get caught,” he stated, rolling his eyes.

All she could do was stay there in silence until she realized she was still on the floor, on her knees. Clearing her throat, she got up, pouch and book in hand. 

“I’ll just go, sorry,” she said, clutching her things to her chest as she began to walk away.

“Allie, right?” he simply called out and Ellie stopped in her tracks, slowly turning back to face him. 

“Your name?” he asked, brow raised.

Realization dawned on her face. He remembered her name. 

Well, almost.

“Ellie, actually, but you were close,” she said offering him a small, awkward smile.

“Is that all?” he asked and she tried her best to understand what he meant.

She came up blank.

“Your name. Is that all there is to it?” he rephrased, looking at her as if she were a child who was unable to comprehend things.

She bit her lip, not liking the look he gave her.

“Eleanora. Finch,” she answered. 

He seemed to think it over for a moment before stating, “I think I like that better.” 

“Eleanora?” she asked, unable to mask her distaste. 

She really hoped he didn’t start calling her by her full name. It was never her preference. It made her sound much older and much more serious. 

He shook his head. 

“Finch.”

There was a certain look in his eyes that she couldn’t quite pinpoint and she wondered if she would ever be able to read Draco or if she would continue on never really understanding the boy.

“Ok,” she simply stated, head tilted slightly as her eyes watched him curiously.

He then proceded to turn his back to her, walking over to the railing that overlooked the lake, leaning his body on it slightly.

“See you around then, Finch,” he says, as he remained facing forward. 

Ellie took this as her cue to leave, gripping her book closer to her chest, and sneaking one last glance at him. 

He looked so serene and unlike his typical self in that moment. She wish she could commit it to memory. 

Making her way down the steps of the tower, mind still reeling from their interaction, she thought back to that mental image of Draco leaning on the railing, looking out into the lake. 

Funny, she thought, how different people like the infamous Draco Malfoy were when they were away from the the noise and the masses and the expectations. They were just left to be like everybody else.


	3. A Forced Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellie recoils at their gazes and could feel the anger radiating off of them. She wasn’t a fan of this attention. She didn’t like them looking at her as if she were naive.

A few days later, on the way to classes, Ellie passed by her friends at the courtyard who she had caught laughing and hollering, clearly looking very amused.

“What’s got you all so entertained?” she asked, a single brow raised in questioning. 

Mauve turned to look at her friend, trying her best to stifle her laughter. 

“Oh, you completely missed it! Malfoy was starting up trouble with Potter once again and Professor Moody intervened and turned Malfoy into a ferret!” she informed her, bursting into a fit once again with the others.

“He was even white, just like his hair. It was bloody hilarious,” Milton chimed in, letting out a very unflattering snort.

Ellie’s eyes widened, but as much as she wanted to, she was unable to keep her face straight. The thought of Draco as a ferret was too funny to act like it wasn’t. 

“No way! Isn’t that like, against the rules? I’m pretty sure a professor can’t use transfiguration on a student, especially as a punishment,” she noted, putting a hand over her mouth as she tried to control her giggling.

“Oh yeah, McGonagall was furious, but it was too good. He even forced him to go into Crabbe’s pants!” Mauve answered and Ellie just about lost it then and there, clutching at her side with the rest of the giggling Hufflepuffs. 

“He’s gonna be scrubbing himself till Christmas. I can’t even imagine what that must have felt like,” Augustus said with a shudder. 

“He made a very cute rat though, didn’t he? For the first time he looked rather sweet and harmless,” Mauve added. 

“I say he should spend the rest of the year as a rodent. See if maybe that humbles him,” Milton teased as the rest chorused in favor.

Ellie shook her head, finally able to regain her composure.

“Come on guys. He’s not that bad...” she said, and immediately regretted it once they all directed their attention towards her.

“Not that bad? Ellie, do you not remember the countless of times that boy has terrorized the students here? Not including the barbaric way he treats Harry and his friends, mind you,” Mauve said, looking at her as if she grew another head.

“Yeah, remember how last year he casted that dreadful Bat-Boogey Hex on me? I had bats flying out of my nose for an entire night! Our bed chambers turned into a bat sanctuary and never mind the fact that I had my exams the following morning,” Augustus complained, clearly still upset about it. 

Ellie grimaced, imagining the scenario in her head. 

“And how he talks back to the professors and flaunts his status in front of everyone. Do you know how tired I am of hearing him say ‘my father will hear about this’? I’ve started to hear it in my sleep!” Milton adds in frustration.

Ellie recoils at their gazes and could feel the anger radiating off of them. She wasn’t a fan of this attention. She didn’t like them looking at her as if she were naive.

“I’m aware that he’s done terrible things, but...”

“But what?” Mauve interrupts. “He’s different on the inside? Seriously Ellie, it’s almost as if you’re in love with him,” she says with a roll of her eyes before turning back to face the rest of the group. 

Ellie remained there, focusing on keeping her face blank, when she felt Mauve’s eyes back on her. She noticed her friends eyes widen and her mouth part, looking as if she caught on to a secret she wasn’t supposed to know. 

“Will you excuse us for a second,” Mauve said to the others, grabbing hold of Ellie’s hand as she pulled her away from the group.

“You’re in love with him!” Mauve stated in shock, trying to keep her tone hushed.

“No, I’m not! I am not in love with him,” Ellie quickly assured her, shaking her head rapidly.

“But you definitely like him, you can’t lie to me Ellie, we both know you’re terrible at it. You really have feelings for Draco Malfoy!” she said in exasperation, looking as if she were going to be sick.

Ellie could feel the heat on her face, completely embarrassed. This was exactly the reason why she kept her feelings to herself.

“Mauve, please...”

“Listen,” she said, cutting her off. “I honestly think that it is a terrible choice on your end, but it’s your choice nonetheless. If you have feelings for Malfoy then there’s nothing I can do but respect that. But please, Ellie, do keep in mind who he really is. Don’t let your feelings romanticize him for your benefit because in the end, there’s a pretty high chance you’ll only get hurt and disappointed,” she warned, eyes softening in concern.

Ellie silently processed her words, instinctively biting her lower lip.

The words Mauve had said weighed heavy on her chest. She was grateful her friend cared enough to say what she did, but she didn’t understand why it was even necessary in the first place. She wasn’t in love with the boy, and even if she was, nothing was ever going to happen with him. She was just pining from afar, as pitiful as that sounded, but she was quite content with that.

She just wish her friend understood.

Mauve’s words continued to replay in Ellie’s head for the entirety of the day, even after classes were finished. As her friends ate and conversed during dinner, she remained quiet, lost in the ghosts of the words Mauve had recited back in the courtyard. 

“Don’t let your feelings romanticize him for your benefit because in the end, there’s a pretty high chance you’ll only get hurt and disappointed.”

That was the line that haunted her the most.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— 

The day of the first challenge for the Triwizard Tournament had started with giddy excitement from the entire school. Ellie had been dressed from head to toe in Hufflepuff pride as she and the other girls in her dormitory, Mauve included, got ready together, enthusiastically adding yellow glitter to their faces and yellow ribbons in their hair. 

Walking out of the castle building to where their section would be located, she felt someone tap her from behind. Turning around to see who had done it but finding no one in sight, she furrowed her brows in confusion before turning forward and coming face to face with Draco Malfoy.

“Hello, Finch,” he stated, a mischievous smirk taunting her from his lips.

She instinctively swallowed.

“Hi, Malfoy,” she responded back, eyes looking up at him, unsure. 

He tilted his head, gray eyes scanning her. 

“I see you’re dressed for the occasion. Rooting for Diggory, I see. Although, if you really were loyal, you would wear those ‘Potter Stinks’ buttons he had his lackeys pass around,” he said with a dark chuckle.

Ellie nervously adjusted the yellow ribbon tied to her ponytail, clearing her throat before responding.

“Actually, Cedric wasn’t a fan of those in the first place. He told everyone to stop wearing them, which I think was the right decision. We want to see him win without the need to put any of his competitors down,” she answered, quite confident in her statement despite the nervousness she felt around him. 

He raised a brow at this.

“Is that so? You really believe that he’ll win this?”

Despite the smirk disappearing from his face, Ellie still felt like he was taunting her.

She nodded. “He’s been working really hard for this. He’s determined to win and he can do anything he sets his mind to. I think anyone can,” she answered sincerely, giving a small nod. 

He remained quiet after that, gaze still transfixed on her. Nervously, she played with her ribbon once more and caught his eyes following her hand movements. 

“That’s a pretty ribbon you got there,” he commented.

Her eyes widened slightly, surprised at his words. “Oh, t-thank you.”

He stepped up closer to her, too close, and her breath immediately hitched in her throat.

“Mind if I...” he trailed off as he raised one hand, purposefully grazing it against her cheek as he reached for the ribbon, causing her to nearly sputter out a strange sound of surprise at the sudden feel of his skin on hers. 

Even though it was just for second, she could feel how cold his skin was against her cheeks and a shiver ran down her spine. He was so close to her at that point that she could breathe in his scent; wood, green apple, and some very strong cologne. She could feel his hand toying with her ribbon as his eyes stayed locked on hers. 

“...keep it?” he finished, and in one swift movement, she felt him pull at it, smoothly untying it from her hair as he dangled it in front of her face, nearly brushing her nose with it.

She was frozen then, unable to process what had just happened.

With a wink, he walked away, but Ellie couldn’t figure out a way to get her legs to work just yet. Instead, she stayed standing in place, eyes fixed on the yellow ribbon hanging from his hand.


	4. Sketchy Exchanges Between Strangers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It sent her through an overwhelming spiral of thoughts and confusion and she so desperately wanted a friend to talk to, but she knew that Mauve and the others would immediately disapprove.
> 
> Anything Draco Malfoy did was a red flag to them.

Her latest run in with Malfoy had consumed Ellie’s head for the majority of that week, even, unfortunately, during the tournament.

She was, of course, over the moon at Cedric’s success at capturing the golden dragon egg (Harry’s too, however she would keep that to herself for the time being until the tension between him and her house blew over), but she just couldn’t shake off the feeling of having had Draco be so close and how he decided to take something of her’s for himself. 

It sent her through an overwhelming spiral of thoughts and confusion and she so desperately wanted a friend to talk to, but she knew that Mauve and the others would immediately disapprove.

Anything Draco Malfoy did was a red flag to them. 

Still, that did lead to her most important question; why did Draco do what he did? He couldn’t seriously have had any interest in her ribbon? It just all seemed like he was...toying with her, but if so, why would he waste his time toying with her? 

All of these questions received no answers for days until Ellie had finally deemed her endless hours anxiously dwelling on it enough and decided to find her own answers.

Thinking back to the first day she had interacted with Draco, she grabbed her sketch book and pencil pouch and headed to the astronomy tower after dinner, waiting to see if she would run into the Malfoy boy. 

Thankfully the universe seemed to be in her favor, because she did. 

“Finch,” he greeted upon seeing her, his infamous smirk on its proper place. “Been running into each other lately, haven’t we? I think you’ve become a bit obsessed,” he teased as he made his way towards her with slow steps.

Ellie clutched her sketchbook to her chest, silently pretending it was a shield of sorts to encourage her to hang onto what little courage she had. 

She took a breath and began. 

“We need to talk,” she stated cautiously, not knowing how this would turn out. “I need you to be honest with me.”

Draco frowned, clearly not a fan of her words. “Talk? About what?”

“About what happened a couple days ago. About the umm...” she wasn’t sure why, but the words she was looking for escaped her so she chose to point to the top of her head where her hair was done up in a ponytail once more.

Draco stared at her, confused, before giving out a scoff, eyes twinkling in amusement. “Oh, your ribbon? Why, want it back? Has no one taught you about sharing, Finch?” and Ellie clutched her book tighter as he once again placed himself inches away from her.

He really wasn’t a fan of personal space, it seemed.

“Why would I have to share my ribbon with you?” she questioned, feeling silly and small in his presence.

“Because I wanted it. Simple as that,” he answered, eyes looking at her as if to challenge him in saying something else about the subject. 

She had no plan to do so.

“Ok...” she said, disappointed that that was all he had to say on the matter. 

This was definitely not going according to her plan. Then again, she wasn’t even sure she had one in the first place. 

His eyes then flickered to the sketchbook she was holding to her chest. “What’s that you’re always bringing up here with you?” he asked nosily and her cheeks immediately flushed.

“It’s, umm...it’s a sketchbook. I like to draw in my free time.”

“Oh really? Well then you’re going to have to share that with me,” he said, moving as if to grab the book but Ellie immediately stepped back, shaking her head with wide eyes.

“Oh no, absolutely not,” she blurted out, taking Draco aback at her sudden outburst.

He frowned once again. “And why not?” A ghost of realization then hit his face and he smirked knowingly. “Oh, I get it. It’s filled with drawings of me. Am I your muse, Finch?” he taunted, lifting his brows.

Ellie unfortunately couldn’t control a small laugh from escaping her, nerves setting in as she knew now that she had to explain. “No, actually, I’m...quite terrible at drawing and I’m terrified of you looking at them because...well, they’re really bad,” she said, and placed a hand over her mouth to contain the rest of her nervous giggling.

Draco eyes her now like she was completely mad.

“So you’re telling me you spend your time doing something you’re horrible at?”

She bit her bottom lip, trying to figure out a way to explain it to him best. “Well, yes. Have you never done something not because you’re good at it or you have to, but simply because you enjoy it?” she asked, and the very blonde boy remained staring at her oddly.

“No, actually, that sounds bloody ridiculous and like a terrible waste of time.” 

She subconsciously pushed her bottom lip out, resembling a small pout, as she stood there awkwardly, eyes avoiding his. Feeling the weight of the book on her chest, she looked at it for a moment before handing it towards him, wondering what was possessing her to do so.

He looked at her offering with furrowed brows, eyes asking her the same question.

“Just pass through it. No point in not letting you see it now that you know that I’m awful at it. You might find some amusement in it. Just, please, be prepared. I wasn’t being hard on myself, I really am crap at drawing.” 

He snatched the book from her hand then, an action she thought was a bit too dramatic, and opened the book, eyes analyzing every page as he flipped thorough it.

Ellie stood there, watching him pass through the book as she chewed on her bottom lip nervously. She was never usually this bold, letting someone (especially someone like Draco Malfoy) go through her sketchbook knowing very well how terrible her sketches were. Yet she felt that the only way the tension between them would dissipate was to be honest and open with him, like how she wanted him to be with her. Maybe then he’ll tell her the real reason why he took her ribbon.

How silly of her to still be hung up on such a little thing.

“Wow, you weren’t wrong. You really are shit at drawing,” he commented midway through his flipping.

Ellie blushed, embarrassed, but also found his blunt honesty amusing, and couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle. “I know. It’s a good thing art isn’t part of our curriculum. I would absolutely fail, without a doubt,” and she felt her chest swell up at hearing him laugh along with her.

“Honestly,” he said, handing the book back to her once he finished. “You know, you’re very strange.”

“And you’re very judgmental,” she quickly threw back, causing Draco’s eyes to widen slightly, not expecting her response.

She raises a brow at him, lips forming into a soft smile. “You only think I’m strange because you don’t understand what I’m talking about,” she elaborated before leaning down to sit on the floor. 

She patted the spot next to her, looking up at Draco as she did so, but the boy shook his head with a frown.

“Are you mad? I’m not sitting on the floor. I’ll get my pants all dirty,” he said in disgust.

Ellie playfully rolled her eyes, looking up at him from her lashes. “They won’t be, but if they are, I promise I will clean them for you. Just...please sit with me?” she asked, eyes silently pleading with him.

He stood there stubbornly, arms crossed against his chest and Ellie was sadly aware of what his answer would be, but just as she was about to tell him to forget about it, he sat himself on the floor next to her with a huff.

“There. I’m sitting. Now what?” he asked begrudgingly and Ellie had to keep herself from grinning at him. 

She opened her sketchbook to an empty page before handing it over to him, along with a pencil. “Take this and just...go with the flow,” she instructed.

He looks at her like she told him the most insane thing possible. 

“You want me to sit here and draw?” he questions in disbelief.

“Mhm,” she said, smiling sheepishly at him. “Just one drawing. It could be of anything you want. A bird. A flower. Even a stick person. I just want you try it out for yourself.” 

“I’ve drawn before, you do know that right?” he scoffed, finding the task she had assigned him to be entirely ridiculous.

“Doodling while taking notes in class doesn’t count,” she pointed out.

With a heavy sigh and a roll of his eyes, Draco took the book and pencil from her hands and began to do as he was requested. 

It was a funny sight, she admitted to herself, seeing the boy draw with a frown etched on his face. He looked very unamused at first, but as he continued moving his pencil throughout the page, the frown on his face softened and a more concentrated look falls on his features. Ellie smiled softly to herself, trying to keep her eyes away from the page he was working on, wanting to see it only when he finished.

After a couple of minutes, Draco cleared his throat and handed the book back to her.

“Personally, I don’t think I did too bad,” he admitted, eyes on the page she was now able to see.

A snake graced the middle of the once empty page and Ellie was surprised to find that it was a very well drawn one. Lips slightly parted in surprise, she noticed he had even shaded in the scales.

“Don’t think you did too bad?” she repeated, eyes taking in the details he was able to add from memory. 

Draco immediately frowned once again, taking her tone the wrong way. “Well it’s at least loads better than your pitiful attempts,” he spat out.

At that, Ellie immediately looked up at him, shaking her head. “No, I mean that in a good way. As in you did way better than just ‘not too bad’. You actually did a wonderful job,” she admitted sincerely. 

Ellie was aware of Draco’s infamous temper. The way he’d snap at the drop of a pin, especially if it was dropped in a way he didn’t like, had him labeled as a simple hot head by others. And although that could be true, she understood why he reacted in such a way; he was taught his whole life that people could be cruel, so he needed to be cruel first.

Ellie knew all about the Malfoy family, namely Draco’s father, Lucius. She remembers the day she went back home after her first year at Hogwarts, how she gushed to her father about her new school and her new friends and the new boy she really wanted to befriend.

Her father had recognized the name, Malfoy, and frowned as he looked at his daughter in concern.

“You have to be careful with that boy, Eleanora. I can’t judge him, because I’ve never met him personally, but if he’s anything like his father, then he’s not someone you want to surround yourself with.”

She was snapped back to reality when Draco spoke once again.

“Really? That good?” he asked, looking his drawing over. 

Ellie nodded. “Yes. I guess you found something you’re naturally talented at.” 

He looks up at her, expression unreadable. She feels her face warm up at the sudden intimacy she felt, realizing how close he sat next to her and how she could notice the different shades of gray in his eyes.

Clearing her throat, noticing how flustered she was becoming, she closed her sketchbook and put her pencil away. The sound of the pouch zipping fills the silence and Ellie feels even more awkward until Draco finally speaks up.

“Are you going to go on the trip to Hogsmeade tomorrow?” he asked, causing her to turn her attention back to him.

“Oh, umm...yeah. I am,” she answered, attempting to play it cool despite her still blushing self. 

“Perfect. You’ll join me then,” he said, standing up and dusting his pants off. Ellie’s eyes widened but Draco didn’t acknowledge it, simply stating “I’ll see you tomorrow, Finch,” before exiting the tower. 

Ellie remained staring at the spot Draco had been, processing the entirety of their latest exchange, feeling her heart race a little at the realization that he had just formally asked (well, demanded) to hangout tomorrow.

.....

What in Merlin’s beard just happened?


	5. The Snake Pit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Usually she’d be over the moon about it, looking forward to trying the sweets at Honeydukes with Mauve and friends, but today she would be hanging out with someone different.
> 
> Today she would be hanging out with Draco Malfoy.

Ellie woke up with a case of the nerves the next morning of the weekend trip to Hogsmeade. Usually she’d be over the moon about it, looking forward to trying the sweets at Honeydukes with Mauve and friends, but today she would be hanging out with someone different.

Today she would be hanging out with Draco Malfoy. 

It was all she could think about last night and it would have almost kept her up if it wasn’t for the fact that she was a rather big fan of sleep and could sleep through almost anything. Now however, as she proceeded to go through her things, she really wish she had stayed up to at least plan her outfit.

“What’s got you so jittery?” Mauve had asked her as she was getting ready. “I’ve never seen you go through your clothes like that. Your side of the room looks like a tornado went through it.”

Of course, when Ellie confessed to her about her plans with Draco, Mauve wasn’t all too pleased. Still, she acted as supportive as she could, even helping her pick out an outfit for the day.

Taking one last look at herself in the mirror, Ellie decided that her simple choice of jeans and a knitted cream sweater would do. Mauve even helped with her hair, coming up with a half up half down style before finishing it off with a delicate white ribbon tied to it. 

As they all gathered outside, waiting for the professors to announce their departure, Ellie spotted Draco almost immediately, grouped up with his usual choice of company. She was unsure whether to approach him, the thought of her initiating a confrontation making her anxious.

“What if he changed his mind?” she pointed out to Mauve, who responded with a roll of her eyes.

“Then I was right and he’s an idiot. Come on, just walk up to him and say ‘hey’. You can do this. I’m rooting for you.”

“No you’re not, you hate him & you hate that I’m doing this,” Ellie corrected. 

“Details, details. That’s all besides the point, and the point is that you need to go up to him,” she said as she pushed her towards Draco’s direction.

Ellie stumbled, nearly tumbling right into Draco and his friends. She made sure to look back at Mauve, sending an upset look her way, however the dark haired girl just simply waved back with a smile.

Looking back towards the group that was now in front of her, she nervously cleared her throat and forced out a small smile. 

“Umm...hi,” she managed to say, feeling her face heat up from the silent stares she was receiving. 

Draco’s nose turned up, eyes practically glaring at her in disgust. “Can I help you?”

Oh no.

“You...you invited me to hang out with you yesterday. Remember? Back at the tower?” she tried to explain, but Draco’s expression remained the same. 

This was exactly what she feared. 

“Me? Ask to hangout with you? You must be out of your right mind,” he stated, looking down at her like she was the most pathetic thing he had ever laid his eyes on. 

Perhaps, she was.

Ellie pressed her nails to the inside of her palm, trying to keep herself from outright running away. The embarrassment was too much. 

“Oh. Ok,” she said before turning away. Before she was even half a step away from them, however, she felt a hand turn her around and was now back to facing Draco.

This time, his expression was one of amusement.

“Oh come on Finch, take a joke will you. I’m just messing with you,” he said, eyes glittering with mischief as he looked at his friends, who were snickering to themselves. 

Draco laughed along with them and Ellie swallowed down the lump that had formed in her throat. She noticed Pansy Parkinson looked the most amused out of all of them, so she made sure to avoid eye contact. 

“I assume you know Crabbe and Goyle, Pansy and Blaise?” he asked her and she nodded silently.

She still felt uneasy from their exchange earlier and was trying her best to compose herself once again. It also didn’t help that the she was being watched like some kind of prey by the rest of them.

“Cats got your tongue?” Draco asked, raising a brow and looking like he was almost enjoying it. “Well then, you guys remember Finch. The Hufflepuff I’ve been telling you so much about,” he explained and Ellie realized that he still had a hand on her shoulder.

She blushed furiously and tried to refrain from looking any of them in the eye. She felt very much like a mouse being thrown in a pit of snakes.

“Of course. How could we forget,” Pansy answered and Ellie noted the bitterness in her tone.

“You know, she’s far prettier than you described Malfoy,” Blaise said, looking her up and down. 

She bit her lip, wishing she had something to hide her face with; Flustered was an understatement. 

Draco looked at her, giving her a wink and she could feel her breath hitch in her throat. 

“Really? I think you talked her up a bit too much, if I’m being honest,” Pansy stated, switching her gaze from Draco to Ellie, arms crossed and a brow raised in a challenge.

Ellie wasn’t going to lie, that did sting her quite a bit and she was starting to get the message that Pansy wasn’t the biggest fan of her. 

First meeting and already she was making an enemy of sorts. This was going smashingly. 

“Don’t mind Pansy, she’s rather the jealous type,” Draco admitted, smirking at Pansy.

Pansy rolled her eyes at this and looked away from them both, scoffing under her breath.

“We’re all harmless really. Unless, you know, you do something to piss us off,” he said with another laugh, his friends joining in. He then turned back to Ellie, expression switching to one of seriousness as his eyes stared deeply into her’s. She froze as she felt his hand, which was still on her shoulder, apply more pressure on her. “But you won’t do that, will you Finch?” he asked, silver eyes keeping her in place. 

After a few seconds of tense silence, she shook her head and Draco immediately unlatched his hand from her shoulder, smirking once again. 

“Then it’s settled. Welcome to the crew, Hufflepuff.” 

The uneasiness she felt from that moment remained even as they began to walk with the rest of the school to Hogsmeade and, for the first time, she was starting to think that she should have heeded Mauve’s words about hanging out with Draco Malfoy. 

——————————————————————----------------------------

Once they arrived to Hogsmeade, they spent their time heading into different shops where Draco and his friends decided that making fun of everyone that came in was much more fun than actually looking at what the shops had to offer. 

“I already have everything that’s worth anything here,” Draco stated arrogantly at Ellie when she had pointed out an interesting looking quill that wrote in solid gold.

The rest of his friends snickered, with Pansy repeating “oh my gosh look how cool a quill that writes in gold!” in imitation, taunting Ellie’s initial remark with a roll of her eyes and a nasty smirk.

Ellie swallowed a lump in her throat and decided not to say anything else during the duration of their hangout. Every time she spoke out about anything, it earned her nothing but taunts and teases from the group, leaving her feeling incredibly insecure and unwanted. 

Finally, they decided to end their day with a Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks Inn. What Ellie assumed was going to be just an innocent catch-up as they drank their Butterbeers in peace, however, turned into a fire whiskey shot competition between Crabbe & Goyle as the rest of them cheered them on. 

All accept for Ellie, who sat uncomfortably between Draco and Blaise who would slam their hands on the table every so often, scaring the living day lights out of her.   
Despite the fact they were all very well under the age of 17 (the legal drinking age of consuming Firewhisky, mind you) Draco’s status and connections allowed them to be sneakily served some at their command. He had even offered her one but it remained sitting in front of her, tiny glass still full. 

“What’s wrong little Hufflepuff? Not having fun?” she heard Pansy say from her seat across from her. 

Ellie looked up, having been staring down at her shot glass, watching it wobble with every slammed hand from the rowdy boys. “I am. I’m just a bit tired,” she replied, fiddling with her fingers under the table.

Pansy smirked at this, which sent a shiver down Ellie’s back. “Is that so? Well then, you should take a drink. It’ll be sure to wake you right up,” she advised, but from the look on her face, Ellie knew she wasn’t suggesting that out of the kindness of her heart.

Draco, having overheard them, turned his attention to their conversation, frowning. “You still haven’t downed it, Finch? Come on now, you know refusing a drink from someone, especially a friend, is rude. You don’t wanna be rude, do you?” and the whole table quiets down and directs their attention to her.

Friend. 

He just called himself her friend. 

...why doesn’t it feel that way ?

She feels the pressure from all their gazes and despite not wanting to, picks up the shot glass hesitantly, eyes avoiding the gray ones watching her.

“Drink it,” he commands and Ellie stares at the golden liquid in the glass for a moment before throwing it back, feeling an immediate burn in her throat.

She sputters and coughs as she sets the glass down, taken aback by the strong, bitter taste, and hears Draco snicker next to her. The rest of the group smirks and chuckles along, Pansy looking very pleased with herself as she says “Looks like the little Hufflepuff can’t take her liquor. No shock there.”

Draco pats Ellie’s shoulder and she flinches at his touch. “Atta girl. That’s sure to losen you up a bit. You’re so stiff, you know” he says, but she refuses to look back up at him.

“Honestly. You know, you’d be way more attractive if you would just actually let yourself have fun. I thought you would be a lot more pleasant to be around,” Blaise commented with a roll of his eyes. 

This triggered something in Ellie, and she immediately shrugged off Draco’s hand on her shoulder, standing up from her place at the table and causing everyone seated near them to look their way. 

“You don’t get to speak to me like that. None of you do. I would be ‘more pleasant’ if you deserved it, but you don’t. Im tired of how you’ve all been treating me and frankly, I’m glad I’m not ‘more attractive’ to you Blaise, because the thought of someone as awful as you being attracted to me sounds genuinely repulsive.”

She was greeted with nothing but the shocked silence from the group, thanking the universe that they, for once, had nothing to say. Turning to Draco, who looked as taken aback as the rest, she handed him the empty shot glass.

“Thank you for the drink and the day out. Sorry this didn’t work out as planned,” she stated, walking away from the table and out of the inn.

As she passed the crowded entrance of the inn, anger quickly subsiding into embarrassment with the realization that she had a meltdown for half of Hogsmeade to see, Ellie understood now that her ambition to become something more than a simple passerby in Draco Malfoy’s life was as silly and futile as it sounded. 

Passing by the window at Honeydukes, she could see her friends inside, laughing mindlessly together.

Perhaps it was for the best to remain in her typical routine of hanging out with her typical friends doing her typical things. That way she had no way of being disappointed or displeased.

And embarrassed.

Don’t forget about embarrassed.

She opened the door to Honeydukes and shuffled inside, eyes directly making contact with Mauve’s dark ones, who's face shifts from joyous to concerned, noticing the look on Ellie’s. Without excusing herself from the group, she immediately makes her way towards her and embraces her in a hug.

“I’m guessing it didn’t go well,” she says and Ellie was surprised to find the tears willing up in her eyes already.

“Nope,” she replies, and Mauve gently moves out of the embrace, rubbing Ellie's shoulders in an act of comfort as she offers her an apologetic look.

“Malfoy doesn’t deserve you,” she states, but Ellie remains silent, eyes drifting to her boots.

“Come on then, Milton was just telling us how he got 3 earth worm flavored beans in a row. I think we’re gonna risk buying a box of Bertie Bott's and trying them out. Here’s hoping we don’t end up with his luck,” she says in hopes of changing the subject and cheering her friend up.

Ellie is grateful for the subject change and follows Mauve to her group of friends, who welcome her with small smiles. No one questions her about anything, and for that she is appreciative.

She guesses Mauve was right, Malfoy didn’t deserve her. 

But, as her friends laughed once more at something she didn't catch, a small part of her began to wonder if it was perhaps her that didn't deserve him.


	6. Just As Requested

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And although Ellie was still upset over what happened with Draco and his friends, she was genuinely still able to enjoy herself, coming to terms with the fact that there was nothing to go from there.

After they arrived back to Hogwarts, Ellie went directly to the Hufflepuff common room, deciding that sipping on hot coca while sitting on the couch in front of the fire place (Mauve’s suggestion) sounded like the best way to spend the rest of the night. 

The two girl’s giggled and chatted mindlessly, Mauve determined to cheer her best friend right up. And although Ellie was still upset over what happened with Draco and his friends, she was genuinely still able to enjoy herself, coming to terms with the fact that there was nothing to go from there. She hung out with him outside of casual run ins and it didn’t work out. Now she can just go back to her normal every day life, interacting with Draco once a year. 

Just as Mauve began another round of guess-who-did-what-and-where, a first year Hufflepuff student approached them both on the couch.

“Eleanora Finch?” asked the short, blonde boy.

Ellie and Mauve both exchange confused looks with each other. “Umm...yes, that’s me,” Ellie replied.

The boy shifted so he was mostly facing Ellie this time as he said “Draco Malfoy has requested you to meet him outside in the courtyard. He’s waiting for you there right now.”

Ellie’s eyes go wide at this while Mauve frowns deeply. 

“Oh hell no. Malfoy? Listen, you can tell that pathetic white haired rat that there’s no way she’s going to-“

Before she can finish her aggressive retort, Ellie interrupts her by gripping her shoulder. 

“Mauve. Please.”

The dark haired girl directs her expression to Ellie, frown seemingly becoming impossibly deeper. “El, you better not be actually thinking about going to meet him now, are you? After what he pulled today and made you go through? Are you insane?”

“Aren’t you even a little bit curious about what he wants? Besides, it wasn’t even him being a jerk. It was his friends…”

At this, Mauve immediately sits up. “Eleanora Finch, you are more than aware that the people you choose to surround yourself with are a very good implication of who you are as a person. Don’t give me that crap. You yourself even said that he was making you extremely uncomfortable. I mean, pressuring you to drink Fire Whiskey?! Have some self respect girl!”she nearly shouts and the room becomes quiet as everyone turns their attention to the pair. 

The first year Hufflepuff boy watches them, clearly uncomfortable and even a tad bit scared. Ellie looks around the room at the nosy eyes looking their way and swallows. 

“Mauve, please…all I’m going to do is talk to him. I’m not going to kiss his feet or buy him a broomstick,” she starts, but Mauve immediately interrupts. 

“You might as well,” she snaps back bitterly.

Ellie flinches at her tone.

She thinks it over for a moment before setting her mug of hot chocolate down on the ground. “I’m sorry, but I’m going to go talk to him. Please don’t hate me,” she says, getting up from the couch, purposefully avoiding eye contact. 

She thanks the first year and grabs her boots, slipping them on and making her way towards the door of the common room. She takes one last look back at Mauve, who is sulking on the couch with her arms crossed, eyes on the crackling fire.

Even before she gets to Draco, she’s aware that she’s made the wrong choice. 

———————————————

Upon arriving to the courtyard, she spots Draco immediately, leaning on one of the walls as he looks up at the sky. She feels the nerves set in and pulls at the sleeves of her sweater, trying to keep her hands warm, mentally cursing herself for forgetting to bring a coat. Winter had begun and it got very chilly during the nights and right now it did nothing to help ease her anxiety.

She takes a deep breath and makes her way towards him, hoping she doesn’t slip or trip or make a complete fool of herself before getting there. 

Seemingly feeling a presence, his head snaps towards her direction. “Finch,” he calls to her and she has to keep herself from smiling.

Now was not the time for her to be all giddy around him. He made her very upset and she needed him to know. Smiling and blushing and giggling like a love sick school girl was not going to help. 

...even if she technically was a school girl herself. 

“Malfoy,” she responds once she reaches him, trying to keep her tone as dry as possible.

There’s silence between them now and Ellie is left feeling awkward.

“You’re employing first years now?” she asks, hoping to smooth the tension. 

He smirks. “What can I say, they’re very eager to fall on the good graces of their superiors,” and she immediately thinks back to 3 years ago, when he thought she was a first year that time they ran into each other.

She shakes her head and fails to keep a small smile from slipping out this time.

Damn it.

“Well, I’m here. What do you want?” 

He folds his arms across his chest, brow raised. “Are you already being hostile with me?” he questioned, but his tone is teasing in nature. 

“No...I just...you went through the trouble of getting me out here and I just want to know why. We didn’t exactly finish the day off on good terms,” she notes, eyes concentrated on the wall behind him. 

She didn’t want him to see that despite how she was playing it off, she was very nervous about confronting him. And every time she looks into his eyes, she’s back to being compliant to all he says and does.

“Have some self respect girl,” she hears Mauve’s voice echo in her head.

She mentally shoos it away. 

“I called you out here because I wanted to,” he responds simply, and Ellie almost let’s out a frustrated sigh. 

“That’s...that’s not a real answer,” she says, teeth slightly sinking into her bottom lip.

She can feel his eyes on her, and it takes everything in her power not to look back at him. 

Stand your ground Ellie. Don’t look at him. Don’t cave. 

“You know, I was quite surprised with how you reacted back there,” he admits, ignoring her remark. “I never took you as the type.”

“To defend myself?” she asks, not missing a beat.

He blinks and Ellie misses the look of amusement that crosses his face at her snappy answer. “To cause a scene in the middle of a public area.” 

She grimaces, embarrassed, the memory of her calling them out at the Inn too fresh not to relive again. 

“I enjoyed it, though. Blaise was acting like an arse so he deserved it and it was also very entertaining. I would stay away from him for a while, however. He has quite the temper,” he advises, but his expression shows that he is clearly amused.

Ellie shakes her head. “Oh I don’t plan on going anywhere near any of them,” she says, before realizing it had slipped her mouth and hastily added a “No offense.”

“Didn’t like my friends, did you?” he asks, and she can hear his smirk taunting her.

Ellie remained quiet, not wanting to add more to the list of things she shouldn’t say or do;

1\. Cause a scene at a public place  
2\. Tell Draco what pricks his friends are  
3\. Tell him she deserved better answers

He shakes his head at her, letting out a chuckle. “Well, they are...rough around the edges, I suppose,” he admits and Ellie keeps herself from saying something along the lines of ‘that’s an understatement’. 

“I actually wanted to apologize for their behavior. Mine included, if I hurt you in anyway. It’s been a while since I hung out with anyone outside of our group,” he says, and Ellie is surprised to feel a flutter in her chest.

She shakes her head. “It’s okay. You didn’t..I just...”

“I didn’t?” he cuts her off.

“N-no....”

“Then why are you avoiding looking at me?” 

She’s silent, surprised he even caught on to that detail.

‘I don’t want to look at you, because if I do, then I’ll go back to letting you get away with everything.’

She remains silent, a shiver going through her as the cold breeze hits her. She hears shuffling in front of her and next thing she knows, there’s a warm coat being thrown over her shoulders. 

Looking up in confusion, she finds that she is mere inches away from Draco’s face, who had just thrown his coat over her. She blushes furiously as his eyes lock on her’s. 

“You need to start wearing a coat out at night. It’s getting cold and you’re gonna get sick,” he states.

She tries to open her mouth to get something, anything out, but the best she can do is nod, holding the coat in place. 

With his eyes now on her’s, she knows all hope of telling him off was gone. Yet, she couldn’t find it in her to be upset about it.

“The real reason why I asked you out here, Finch, is because I want to ask you something,” he reveals. “I wanted to ask you to go to the Yule Ball with me.”

....

There were few moments in life where Ellie felt like she was living in a fantasy. Sure, growing up in a world with magic should be enough to make you feel like you were in a fantasy book, but that was normal for her. Wands, spells, magical creatures were typical for her on an average, everyday. Draco Malfoy, the boy she’s had a crush on since she was 12, asking her to the Yule Ball, was definitely not typical for her on an average, everyday. 

In truth, that felt like the most make-believe thing she’s ever experienced.

She searches his expression for any sign of it being a practical joke; a shadow of a smirk, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes, but she comes up empty. If she was honest, he looked the most sincere that she’s ever seen him.

She’s sure that her eyes are as wide as saucers but before she can even respond, something cold and wet hits her head.

It starts pelting on her harder and as she looks up with a frown, she can see the rain that is now coming down on them.

“Shit,” Draco says under his breath and before she has time to think, she grabs hold of his hand and runs to the nearest entrance of the castle.

Once protected by the roof over their heads, Ellie, soaking wet along with Draco, let’s out a soft chuckle, trying to catch her breath as she gripped the coat tighter to herself. “Wow, that came out of nowhere, didn’t it?” 

She looks at Draco, who’s silently looking down at something, and follows his gaze to their still intertwined hands. 

Her cheeks reddened and she’s just about to pull it away and apologize when he pulls her closer to him, his free hand reaching out to tilt her chip up to face him.

Her entire breath halts and she’s eyeing him with genuine shock, taken back by how intimate and sudden his actions are.

“Say you’ll go with me,” he says, and it almost sounds like a demand as his silver eyes look deep into her brown ones.

With his hand cupping her chin, she found herself unable to form a sound again, completely overwhelmed. 

That is, until she hears the words “I’ll go with you,” slip out of her mouth almost automatically.

Just as he requested.


	7. All By Yourself

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She can begin to feel the butterflies in her stomach at his presence, having genuinely forgotten they had shared this class together. She's not sure why, but after he asked her to the ball, she's become more nervous about being around him. Even thinking about him made her anxious.

The next morning, Ellie wakes up with the memory of last night clear in her head. She smiles to herself, stretching out on her bed, trying to hang onto that giddy feeling a while longer. Knowing she couldn't lay in bed forever, she sits up, yawning as her eyes drift over to the bed beside her.

Mauve still laid asleep, soft snores emitting from her sleeping form and Ellie is back to feeling a heavy weight on her chest again as she remembers their disagreement last night.

Quietly jumping out of bed, she approaches Mauve's and takes a deep breath before gently tapping her on her shoulder.

"Mauve...." she whispers, and she's greeted with the sound of tired groans.

"Hey, come on, wake up. It's time for us to make up and be best friends again," she says, smiling sheepishly.

Mauve groans once more before finally rolling over, eyes squinting up at her. "Did you punch Malfoy in the face last night?" she asked sleepily.

"No...."

"Then I guess I'm in the market for a new best friend," she says, laying back down on her stomach, resting the side of her face on the pillow. "I might look into asking Granger. She was ahead of the game and punched Draco last year. Smart girl."

Ellie sighs, looking up at the ceiling in slight frustration before sitting down on the edge of the bed. "Look, I'm aware that I'm stupid."

"Very stupid," Mauve chimed in.

"And pathetic."

"Very pathetic."

"But...why can't you just let me be stupid and pathetic and learn from my mistakes without punishing me for it? I mean, isn't that the whole point?"

There's a moment of silence between them, Ellie's words hanging in the air.

Just as she's about to start talking once again (she was ready to go to Plan B: begging), Mauve sits up and faces her.

"Look, I just don't want you to get hurt. I care about you and I don't want anyone, especially a stupid spoiled boy like Malfoy, to take advantage of you," she admits sincerely.

Ellie lays her hand on top of her's, offering a sympathetic smile. Despite the simple gesture it's enough for Mauve to sigh and return the smile back. "Alright, we can make up and be best friends again."

"So you're not gonna go ask Hermione to be my replacement?"

"Nah. She's too much of a know-it-all for my taste," she jokes and the two girls laugh before embracing each other in a hug.

"So, how did it go with the Slytherin Prince then?" she asks once they pull apart.

"It honestly went pretty well. He apologized actually," she admitted and Mauve raised a brow.

"Draco Malfoy? Apologized? Well that's a first."

Ellie scratched the back of her head, letting out a light chuckle. "Yeah, umm...the reason why he wanted me to go to the courtyard was because he wanted to ask me something."

"What? Where he left a likable personality trait?" Mauve remarks with a roll of her eyes.

"Actually, he asked me to the yule ball," she answers quickly and Mauve just about fell out of the bed.

"He what?!?!?"

Ellie blushed. "He asked me to the ball. And I said yes."

Mauve gripped Ellie's shoulders and shook her rapidly. "YOU'RE GOING TO THE YULE BALL WITH DRACO MALFOY?!?!?"

It is then that Ellie and Mauve freeze, noticing several pairs of eyes on them.  
....

"Thanks Mauve, for that lovely announcement you just made to our entire dormitory," Ellie stated between gritted teeth, checks flushed.

Mauve looked around at each girl that was now gossiping and giggling under their breaths. "Oops?" she offered, looking at Ellie with an apologetic expression.

————————————————————————————

The next day arrives and classes are back in session. Ellie goes through Divination, Herbology, and Potions as normal, completing assignments and participating in class. Come Transfiguration, however, things take a shift from the usual.

"As you all know, the Yule Ball is only a week away and I've taken upon myself to teach you all the proper dances required of you for the event. So, grab a partner and make sure to make space for yourselves," Professor McGonagall instructed.

Ellie was completely caught off guard by the impromptu lessons and it seemed like she wasn't the only one.

"Dance classes? She can't be serious," Mauve comments with a shake of her head.

"Think there's a chance she'll let us pair up?" Ellie asks as she looks at most of the students already pairing up, mentally dreading the assignment already.

Mauve frowns, eyes on her. "Why would you want to pair up with me if your date is literally..."

"Ahem."

Getting cut off, both girls turn around to a familiar blonde boy, an ever too familiar smirk gracing his features.

"...in this class," Mauve finishes, rolling her eyes and turning back to her friend. "I'm gonna go grab Augustus before someone else does. I don't wanna be the only one without a partner or else Merlin knows I'll be forced to waltz with McGonagall," she states with a grimace, refusing to even acknowledge Draco as she walks away.

"Isn't she...charming," Draco says, but Ellie can tell that's not the word he actually means.

She can begin to feel the butterflies in her stomach at his presence, having genuinely forgotten they had shared this class together. She's not sure why, but after he asked her to the ball, she's become more nervous about being around him. Even thinking about him made her anxious.

"Seems only right that we become partners. I mean, you'll only be dancing with me at the ball, right?" he asked, looking down at her.

She's unsure if he's joking or not but she lets out a laugh that reveals her nervousness a little too much for her liking.

"I don't know. Depends on how good of a dancer you are," she responded, turning to look back at McGonagall, who stood next to a phonograph.

With a wave of her wand, the needle lands down on the record disc, music filling the room instantly.

"Alright then, please bow to your partners, and begin by one of you placing a hand on their waist and the other interlocked in their hand."

McGonagall gives off more instructions as everyone listens and proceeds to try them out.

"So you don't think I'm a good dancer?" he questions as they bow simultaneously to each other.

"How can I possibly think that when I've never seen you dance?" she answers, and in the span of a second, he has a hand gripping her waist, pulling her closer so they are chest to chest.

She lets out a small gasp and his smirk tells her that's exactly the reaction he wanted.

"You're right. I just have to show you then."

Ellie can feel herself blush so she decides to avoid his gaze, choosing to look back in search of Mauve. She spots her with Augustus, loudly slapping his hand away from her waist and earning an 'Ow!' and a 'That's where I'm supposed to put them!' from him.

Ellie can feel herself begin to move, Draco following along with McGonagall's instructions. In truth, she had no idea what she was doing. Her mind was racing a mile a minute so she allows him to take the lead and guide her to whatever step she's supposed to do next.

"Seriously Finch, you have to actually look at me for this. If not, you're gonna..." Ellie feels Draco tense up and immediately faces forward. She's greeted by a pained expression on his face and notices her foot on his.

"...step on me," he finishes and Ellie immediately retracts her foot.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she says frantically, looking at him with wide, apologetic eyes.

Draco lets out a small grunt and tightens his grip on her waist, to which she feels her breath hitch in her throat.

"Ok, maybe I'll be the one dancing with other people at the ball," he mutters under his breath.

Ellie looks down at their feet, concentrating on not stepping on him once again, when she hears him say "I'm gonna have to literally force you to look at me. If not, you're gonna leave me with a broken foot and I won't be able to even go to the ball."

They're swaying to the music now and Ellie can feel herself grow less tense, allowing herself to feel the music as Draco continues to lead her into each step.

Still not raising her head up, however, she responds with "Then you can just go to Madame Pomfrey. She'll fix you right up."

"Are you gonna visit me?" he asks, taking her by surprise as he twirls her, a move not directed by Professor McGonagall, and she's now back to looking up at him, his gray eyes focused on her's.

No matter how many times Ellie has stared up at them, she still feels absolutely captivated. This time, however, she forces herself to speak.

"No, I'll be too busy having fun at the ball," she says, and she finds herself enjoying the surprised expression on Draco's face.

She giggles at him, following along with his steps when a small thought passes through her head.

"Can I confess something?" she asks, face notably softening up.

"Umm..." he looks to the side for a moment before turning back to her. "Sure."

She bites her lip, processing what she wants to say. "I'm...I'm sorry if I've been acting weird lately. I know you've noticed I've been avoiding looking at you, but it's not because I'm mad at you or anything. It's because...well..." She pauses.

She knows she's risking sounding absolutely juvenile in front of him, but decides that there's no point in keeping things from a boy who notices everything.

"When I look at you, I just become a complete mess. I can't even talk properly, let alone think straight, and sometimes I'm not even myself in a way and...that's all very silly isn't it?" she asks, letting out a nervous chuckle.

Draco's eyes stay on her, showing no readable expression for her to make out. "Why are you telling me all this?" he asks simply after a moment.

With her big brown eyes looking up at him in earnest she says "I don't want you to feel bad."

A familiar yelp gets her attention and Ellie notices Augustus rubbing the side of his head in pain while Mauve has her right hand raised.

"For the last time woman, I'm just following directions!" Augustus exclaims in exasperation and Ellie can't help but laugh.

Draco remains quiet, watching her, before she turns back to him.

"At least we're doing far better than they are. And I must admit you're not exactly a terrible dancer..."

It takes a moment, his face still filled with something Ellie can't pinpoint, but before she even can try to make it out, a smirk is once again on his lips. "Not exactly terrible? And what will earn me a 'great' then?"

"Hmm...if you have the ability to make me look great too," she answers.

"Oh please. Don't give me that," he says with a roll of his eyes.

She frowns. "What?"

"That naive act you put on. As if you don't know."

She thinks for a second, frown still remaining. "Well I don't...."

Suddenly his hands are now on both sides of her waist. Professor McGonagall is yet again giving directions about a particular step in the dance but all Ellie hears is the hammering in her chest.

Her eyes follow him as he leans down, mouth hovering over her ear, so close she can feel his lips brush against it.

"You do that all by yourself, Finch," he whispers and before she knows it, she's hoisted up in the air, spinning slightly, before landing perfectly on her feet.

Despite landing, Draco doesn't move his hands from her waist. He remains silent and her eyes stay on his, noticing the way it's focused on her mouth.

The sound of clapping brings her back to reality.

"Excellent work, Eleanora and Draco! First try and you've executed it perfectly. 5 points awarded to each of your houses," Professor McGonagall states happily.

They both look back at each other, Ellie having forgotten where they even were, blushing heavily.

She notices an odd look on Draco's face again, but just as quickly as she spots it, it vanishes, and he's back to smirking at her. "Guess I showed you how good of a dancer I am."

He turns to high five a fellow Slytherin near him and Ellie remains frozen in place.

All she can manage is a delayed, stiff nod.


End file.
